The IDB and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) will provide up to US$600mn in financing for renewable energy and energy efficiency projects in Guyana and other Central America and the Caribbean over the next five years, the bank said in a statement.
The statement said that financing will benefit Belize, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Jamaica, Nicaragua, Panama and Suriname.
Under the agreement, IDB and JICA have created two co-financing schemes: joint-co-financing, in which IDB will match financing provided by JICA in each project; and parallel co-financing, in which each organization will separately finance specific components of an eligible project.
JICA will provide US$300mn in concessional financing for the facility, which could potentially mobilize another US$300mn from the IDB’s own resources if all projects are financed under the joint co-financing scheme, the statement said.
“We are considering potential projects in the areas of hydroelectric power plant rehabilitation, photovoltaic power generation, and installation of energy saving facilities and equipment,” said Toshitaka Takeuchi, energy specialist and technical contact for the agreement at IDB’s energy division.
